Abdul Karim Khan
| Abdul Karim Khan | |||
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| Background information | |||
| Born | 11 November 1872 | ||
| Origin | Kairana, Uttar Pradesh | ||
| Died | 27 October 1937 | ||
| Genres | Indian classical music | ||
| Occupation(s) | singer of Hindustani classical music | ||
| Years active | 1893-1937 | ||
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Ustad Abdul Karim Khan (Devanagari: अब्दुल करीम ख़ान, Persian script: استاد عبدالکریم خان) (11 November 1872 – 27 October 1937), was an Indian classical singer and the founder of the Kirana Gharana. "He has been acclaimed as the 'maestro who conceived, evolved, and popularized the Kirana gharana, and in fact, he changed the entire mood of khayal and thumri singing."
Abdul Karim Khan was born in Kairana town in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh into a family with music tradition which traced its roots to musician brothers Ghulam Ali and Ghulam Maula. His father, Kale Khan was the grandson of Ghulam Ali. Abdul Karim Khan received training from his uncle Abdullah Khan and father Kale Khan. He also received guidance from another uncle Nanhe Khan. Apart from vocals and sarangi, he also learnt Veena (Been), Sitar and Tabla.
According to a story, he was initially a sarangi player, but decided to switch to vocals because of low status of sarangi players. In his early years, he used to sing with his brother Abdul Haq. They appeared before Murtaza Khan of the Maula Bakhsh khandan in order to appear before the Mahajara and were influenced by Murtaza's style. Baroda ruler was impressed by this singing duo and made them the court musicians. This is where he met Tarabai Mane, who was the daughter of Sardar Maruti Rao Mane, a member of the royal family. When they decided to get married, they were ousted from Baroda. The couple settled down in Bombay. In 1922, Tarabai Mane left Abdul Karim Khan, which apparently had a major impact on his music - making it pensive and meditative. Karim Khan's first wife, Gafooran was the sister of another Kirana master Abdul Wahid Khan, who was also his cousin.
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